ZAIDA GLIBANOVIC
By ZAIDA GLIBANOVIC
YALLOURN Power station transport trials are going green. EnergyAustralia has partnered with Foton Mobility Distribution (FMD) to test replacing diesel trucks with electric trucks at its Yallourn and Mt Piper power stations, as the company continues to accelerate the clean energy transformation in transport. The trial will feature one FMD T5 electric truck deployed at two of EnergyAustralia’s power generation sites to explore the viability and efficacy of integrating electric vehicles into power generation operations, with the power used to charge the truck being completely carbon offset. Taking place over four to eight weeks at each location, the electric trucks arrived at Mt Piper on June 21, 2023 followed by mid-July at Yallourn. This forms part of an ongoing partnership where EnergyAustralia offers to provide green transport energy infrastructure, which includes solar, battery, and electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions, to FMD’s electric truck buyers. Neil Wang, chief executive of FMD, said Foton Mobility Distribution was thrilled to collaborate with EnergyAustralia in delivering a comprehensive electric truck solution. “We are eager to provide one of our T5 Light Duty electric trucks for EAs trial at their facilities. This trial will contribute to our existing customer data and provide invaluable insights into various usage models across multiple geographic locations,” he said. Jack Kotlyar, head of Green Transport at EnergyAustralia said EnergyAustralia was eagerly anticipating the valuable knowledge it has to gain from this initiative. “We want to understand the feasibility of replacing regular diesel trucks with electric trucks at our power generation sites while maintaining operational efficiency,” he said. The trial is part of EnergyAustralia’s move towards a cleaner and more sustainable future, and is part of EnergyAustralia’s plan to actively transition its vehicle fleets from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. EnergyAustralia’s General Manager Mark Collette said that despite Yallourn’s proposed closure in 2028, there was no reason not to continue using cutting edge technology at the site. EnergyAustralia will soon release a report on the feasibility of EVs based on the outcomes from the trials.
